I've recently raised the same questions here, and there are indeed a couple reasons that favor searching for organic life. The short version is: - Complex stru

I've recently raised the same questions here, and there are indeed a couple reasons that favor searching for organic life. The short version is: - Complex structures are likely to require an element with 4 valence electrones, and carbon is the simplest one of them (lowest mass number), which also provides it with better properties like reactivity compared to e.g. silicium - Hydrogen and oxygen are two of the simplest elements, so probably more likely to exist than anything else with similar properties (if you hear hoof steps, you think of horses, not zebras) - The only life forms we know so fare are based on organic structures, so we know the requirements if its existence and what to look out for See my original comment[1] and its replies for more details. [1]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13668440 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13668440